If the name Flat Teeth doesn’t mean anything to you, there’s a good reason for that. Though the project has been writing and rehearsing in some capacity since 2016, the unknown Milwaukee indie outfit—which features current and former members of John The Savage, Paper Holland, The Invaders, and Twelve Ounce Prophet in its ranks—only just started playing out, and they’ve yet to release any material. That will all change soon, though, as Flat Teeth is set to put out their debut EP this weekend.
That release, the six-song Winter House, finds the project with disparate influences and associated acts landing somewhere in the regions of rock and pop-punk, with a hearty dose of emo added in for flavor. The EP—recorded and mixed by Josh Kristopeit and mastered by Mystery Room Mastering’s Justin Perkins—kicks off in rather rollicking fashion, with the rich harmonies and crashing cymbals that punctuate explosive opener, “Grenade,” and the colorful organ accents and twisting guitar work on “Elevator Eyes.” Singer-guitarist Nik Stoehr’s voice suits the half-dozen songs well, bringing a Bright Eyes-like warble to the effort’s title track, subtly nodding to Deja Entendu-era Brand New on “Marksman,” and leading the frenzied charge with impassioned melodies on the punchy “Play Different” (a definite EP highlight).
Flat Teeth covers a lot of ground over just six songs. Though they have just one live show to their credit so far, the vast experience the band’s members had/have in other projects is evident on this impressive aural introduction. Listen to Winter House in its entirety before Saturday night’s EP release show at Cactus Club. The show begins at 8 p.m. and costs $10. Versio Curs and Live Tetherball Tonight will perform before Flat Teeth’s headlining set.